June 2019 Issue #21

The Soter Group

Perspectives – Unclassified FY20 Federal Government Cyber Security Budget

The President’s Budget Request for FY20 includes $17.4 billion in funding for cyber security activities.
The Department of Defense would see the largest boost to their budget with a 10.4% year-over-year
increase.
The recently released President’s Budget Request touts an addition of nearly $800 million in unclassified
Federal government cyber security budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020. This represents a year-over-year
increase of 4.7%. The bulk of this requested change from FY19 is driven by the Department of Defense’s
(DoD) cyber security budget increase of over $900 million, or 10.4%. Meanwhile, the remaining Chief
Financial Officers (CFO) Act agencies and non-CFO Act agencies would see slight decreases in aggregate
cyber security funding.

FY19 FY20 FY20 v.

FY18
(Estimate) (Request) FY19, % Δ
Total Unclassified Federal Cyber
$15.0 $16.6 $17.4 +4.7%
Security Budget
Of Which: Dept. of Defense (DoD) 8.0 8.7 9.6 +10.4%

Of Which: CFO Act Agencies (ex-DoD) 6.6 7.5 7.4 -1.5%

Of Which: Non-CFO Act Agencies 0.4 0.4 0.4 -2.6%

(in $ billions)
While the non-DoD cyber security budget is largely flat, there are several clear “winners” and “losers” in
the request. Aside from DoD, the Departments of State and the Interior are two of the top three
agencies in terms of percentage increase in requested cyber security budget at 10.1% and 7.9%,
respectively. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Departments of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) and Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
would see significant cuts – in excess of 25% – to their cyber security budgets in the current request.

Cyber Security Budget % Δ,

CFO Act Agency
FY20 Request v. FY19 Estimate
Department of Defense +10.4%
Department of State +10.1%
Department of the Interior +7.9%

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) -27.2%

Department of Agriculture (USDA) -35.3%
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) -35.7%

1100 North Glebe Road, Suite 1010, Arlington, VA 22201 | Tel: 703.224.4407 | Fax: 703.224.8001 | info@thesotergroup.com 1
© 2019 The Soter Group. All Rights Reserved.
 June 2019 Issue #21
The Soter Group

It is important to remember that the President’s Budget Request is merely a starting point and a
statement about the Administration’s priorities. However, to successfully navigate and operate within
the Federal market, it is necessary to understand and triangulate the priorities and intent of the White
House, Congress, and department/agency leadership. Cyber security clearly remains a top priority for
the Federal government, but it is likely that the resulting individual department and agency budgets and
associated increases and decreases will be tempered when all sides weigh in on them.

About The Soter Group

The Soter Group provides services to both the Federal government and the commercial entities that
support it. Our Commercial Services Division provides market research and assessments, competitive
assessments, and strategic advisory services to commercial clients seeking to enter or grow in the
Federal government security market. Justin Taft, President & CEO, and Peter Wong, Director of Market
Research, authored these perspectives. The Soter Group welcomes the opportunity for our research to
be cited in third-party reports. To learn more, please visit www.TheSoterGroup.com and/or email
info@TheSoterGroup.com. To access and read our other reports, please visit: The Soter Group Market
Reports.

Report June 2019: Perspectives – Unclassified Federal Government Cyber Security Budget

1100 North Glebe Road, Suite 1010, Arlington, VA 22201 | Tel: 703.224.4407 | Fax: 703.224.8001 | info@thesotergroup.com 2
© 2019 The Soter Group. All Rights Reserved.